The Dilemma: Yale v. Columbia

[QuizzicalMPHer]

I'm thrilled and a bit shocked to have gotten in to several MPH programs, but now I have to decide. By Friday! I've narrowed my choices to Yale (Social and Behavioral Sciences) and Columbia (Sociomedical Sciences, research track). I'd appreciate any feedback.

In Columbia's favor: I already live in and love New York City. I have a part-time job I could continue during school, an interesting volunteer gig at a program of Columbia's SMS department and friends here. Because it is an enormous school, there is a wealth of course offerings, some of which sound awesome.

My concerns about Columbia: Many of the students and recent graduates I have spoken to, both personal contacts and folks at the open house, seem disappointed with the SMS program. None said, flat out: Don't come here, but the feedback I've gotten has been mixed to negative. The two specific complaints have been about the quality of coursework in my department (which they all agree is dry and some say has prepared them inadequately) and access to faculty. Several were unhappy that they weren't taught much SAS.

Possible mitigating factors: I haven't had the chance to speak with anyone from the research. One would hope they feel better trained in research methods. I just don't know. I'm trying to get people I know to put me in touch with students in the research track. (If you could help me with that, I'd appreciate it!) The wealth of opportunities outside the classroom might compensate for weaker coursework. (But then again, I already live in New York; what I'm paying for is the classes.)

In Yale's favor: Students I met at the admitted students day seemed genuinely happy. Many of them have been doing amazing projects. The faculty is more accessible. Classes are smaller. Opportunities to do research (my primary interest) with faculty, easier to get. The degree I would be pursuing would give me more flexibility to pick my course load. Classes are ungraded, which might take some of the pressure off.

My concerns about Yale: Living in New Haven. The school’s size -- 1/5 of Columbia -- means course options are more limited. Qualitative research methods, an interest of mine, are little taught. I know less about the program because I have only my experience at the admitted students’ day to go on; unlike Columbia I have no personal connections with the school to get the inside scoop.

Possible mitigating factors: I could take classes outside of the school of public health, including field research methods in the sociology department. The last year has been hard and it might be nice to make a clean break and start over somewhere new.

Non-issues: Cost (the same), reputation (I think they are both sufficiently renowned, though Columbia is better known in the public health world), James Franco’s presence on campus.

Whatdya think?

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[Stories]

I think there's a lot of value in staying in the same place you're currently living that you love. You already know a lot of people and will only make more connections. In my personal opinion, the quality of life you have in New York is one that's tough to beat. And coming from someone who enjoys life at Yale, if I had a choice to live in New York, I'd do it in a heart beat.

 

[waystinthyme]

from what you've written, yale seems like the obvious choice to me; unless quality of coursework, access to professors and happiness of the students are things which aren't important to you. i know leaving your comfort zone is always difficult, but in the case of pursuing your graduate education, i think it's warranted. you can always return to new york after you graduate.

-waystinthyme

 

[Zoonosinoid]

I'm thrilled and a bit shocked to have gotten in to several MPH programs, but now I have to decide. By Friday! I've narrowed my choices to Yale (Social and Behavioral Sciences) and Columbia (Sociomedical Sciences, research track). I'd appreciate any feedback.


Whatdya think?

I think you did a good job of listing the pros and cons, especially from your point of view as a potential student, I think of Yale as a hidden gem and strongly considered going there, however I do respect Columbia's reputation, they are ranked higher than Yale in part due to their larger size, but the comfy more personal nature of Yale is something to think about.

 

[intlhealth2010]

I'm thrilled and a bit shocked to have gotten in to several MPH programs, but now I have to decide. By Friday! I've narrowed my choices to Yale (Social and Behavioral Sciences) and Columbia (Sociomedical Sciences, research track). I'd appreciate any feedback.



Whatdya think?

Being dissatisfied with a program you will be paying lot's of $$$ to attend doesn't sound like a good idea. Also, Yale isn't too far from NYC you could still be back in NY rather frequently via train.

I'm surprised at how common it is for Columbia students to be unhappy with the program.

 

[swaffles]

I agree with Stories' advice. You should stay where you think you will get the most job opportunities after you graduate.

I like to think about it pragmatically. Maybe you'll be 90% happy at Yale and 70% happy at Columbia but you'll be going to either school only for two years. Grad school is only two years of the rest of your life. I think it'd be more comprehensive if you consider your volunteering gig and where your friends and their connections can take you, as well as Columbia's network through NYC - which has a ton of NGO and public health org headquarters. This is all assuming that, as you said, cost is not a factor. (This is all reasoning I'm using to choose Columbia)

Oh, Also - Columbia gives off the feeling that people who are go-getters get going VERY well and get all the help they want, while those who are relaxed and wait for the professors to approach them don't get as much from the school. I come from a school where I had to be incredibly proactive to get my professors and admin to help me out, so Columbia's 'climate' won't be an issue for me. That's something to consider.

Small con: I wasn't very impressed with the Epidemiology's Admit Day presentation, even though the information was good. The PowerPoints were very boring and seemed...not given importance. That's just because I feel like good graphics make a school look better and make the student feel more comforted.

 

[2013MPH2013]

Hi,
Just as an observation (which someone else also noted), it sounds like you are leaning towards Yale.

I recently read something that parapalie--something like that wrote about the pros and cons of Yale and Columbia and I think it was in the string about the people who selected Columbia. I found it quite helpful and it summarized a lot of my thoughts.
I did decide to go to Yale but it brings up some good things to think about.

I wasn't considering Columbia but I found one of the hard things was that the programs I was comparing were so incredibly different it was hard to decide. I told a friend that if I could take both programs and marry them it would be perfect Since that obviously wasn't going to happen, I went with Yale.

One thing about Yale was I have experience with qualitative research and I need to strengthen my quantitative skills. Yale will force me to do that. However, I think you will get plenty of qualitative opportunites. Even if you don't get a lot, I think it is a lot easier to build your qualitative skill set on your own where as most people need some practice and structure to building their quantitative skill set. And, Yale seems like a great place to learn that foundation.

Good luck with the decision.

 

[parapluie]

Hi,
Just as an observation (which someone else also noted), it sounds like you are leaning towards Yale.

I recently read something that parapalie--something like that wrote about the pros and cons of Yale and Columbia and I think it was in the string about the people who selected Columbia. I found it quite helpful and it summarized a lot of my thoughts.
I did decide to go to Yale but it brings up some good things to think about.

I wasn't considering Columbia but I found one of the hard things was that the programs I was comparing were so incredibly different it was hard to decide. I told a friend that if I could take both programs and marry them it would be perfect Since that obviously wasn't going to happen, I went with Yale.

One thing about Yale was I have experience with qualitative research and I need to strengthen my quantitative skills. Yale will force me to do that. However, I think you will get plenty of qualitative opportunites. Even if you don't get a lot, I think it is a lot easier to build your qualitative skill set on your own where as most people need some practice and structure to building their quantitative skill set. And, Yale seems like a great place to learn that foundation.

Good luck with the decision.

Haha thanks for remembering that essay of mine! It's right here in case you're curious:

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=808728

I think Yale would be a fantastic place to do research They did emphasize that for your thesis, you're essentially aiming to publish it in a good journal somewhere. Do you know what research area you'd like to focus on? If Yale has profs doing that type of research (or related enough), then I'd say go for it!

When I was walking around New Haven during daytime, close to or on the Yale campus it was quite nice. Beautiful, even. The streets were "quaint" (sorry New Haven haters ) and the food was simply fantastic. Of course, it doesn't compare with NYC, but for a smaller city I'd say it's totally livable. There is the Harkness student dorms right next to the SPH building, for med school and professional school students, if you're worried about finding your own housing and neighbourhood safety. I think they said it's $9000/year (Sept-May) including mandatory meal plan and free printing.

 

[delababy]

I too was faced with this decision and I ultimately chose Columbia. I attended both open houses and will give my impressions

Yale pro: small size; more intimate contact with faculty; greater course flexibility

Yale con: small size, location (sort of), opportunities

Honestly, Yale felt a lot like being back in college all over again. The student formals? Volunteering at a free clinic on weekends? That wasn't enough to tempt me away from everything going on in NYC. However, New Haven was gorgeousness. The architecture, the artsyness vibe, the New Englandy beauty, I loved it.

The alumni job/internship presentation did NOT impress me. Many students went to work in Boston/DC after graduation. I saw relatively few who were NYC based. That scared me a little bit. There is this impression that one can just "get a job in NYC after graduation." If only it were that easy. With a limited access to NYC you are looking to compete with fellow Yale grad students, NYU students, AND Columbia students for the public health jobs here. Personally, I'm not sure how I'd feel moving back to New York to resume my career at 25/26. I like the idea of being here already, establishing myself.

Columbia pro - strength of SMS Health Promotion (for me), location, opportunities

Columbia con - not as much professor involvement

The presenter at the Health Promotion track break out session really hit a soft spot with me. She stressed that we would be learning invaluable skills for our future careers. As far as students, I have *yet* to hear someone say that they don't like Columbia. Are they perfectly happy every minute, absolutely not. But I expect that from a larger school. You can't make everyone happy all the time. I didn't like that there wasn't a lot of inter-department collaboration at Columbia. That definitely made me sad. As a person who tries hard to diversify her interests, I can't imagine getting so focused on my track I would ignore the other learning opportunities available from other departments.

At the end of the day, I'd rather be where the action is than have teachers who invest time in me. I care about me )) and I think that's enough. The choice of Yale would be great for someone who is highly interested in research, as they certainly stressed a focus on research. But as someone who is interested in more practical aspects of public health, I'm not sold on Yale.